Underperformance: What To Do Before It Becomes A Bigger Problem
Underperformance: What To Do Before It Becomes A Bigger Problem
There's a specific moment I hear about often, from founders and ops leads around Sheffield and out towards Chesterfield and Doncaster, where someone says "I've known for months this wasn't working." Months. And nothing had been said. That gap is where most of the damage gets done, both to the business and, oddly, to the employee, who's often left wondering why nobody flagged it sooner.
Underperformance is rarely just about capability
Before assuming someone simply isn't good enough, it's worth asking what else might be going on. Unclear expectations. No proper induction. A manager who assumed rather than checked. In a fair number of the cases I've been brought into, the underperformance sat as much with the system around the person as with the person themselves. That's not a comfortable thing to hear if you're the one who hired them, but it's usually true.
Informal doesn't mean vague
A quiet word doesn't need to be a formal process, but it does need to be specific and it does need a follow up date. "Let's chat again in three weeks" achieves nothing if nobody actually diarises it. I've reviewed enough performance files where the entire evidence base was one Post-it note from eight months ago.
When to move to a formal PIP
Performance improvement plans get a bad reputation, often deserved, because they're used as a paper trail towards exit rather than a genuine attempt to help someone improve. Done properly, they set clear, achievable targets with real support attached and regular check-ins, not just a box that gets ticked at the final review before dismissal.
The conversation nobody wants to have
Sometimes, after genuine support, it still isn't working. That's a harder conversation, but it's a fairer one to have honestly than to let someone limp along in a role that isn't right for them, quietly resenting the business while everyone else picks up the slack.
If underperformance in your team has been sitting unaddressed for longer than you'd like to admit, King HR Advisory works with Sheffield and South Yorkshire businesses to build the structure around these conversations, so they happen properly and early rather than as a last resort.